Review: Huawei Activa 4G for MetroPCS

For the price, the Huawei Activa 4G is almost worth it. Almost. Huawei had to dial down the specs to keep the cost low, and it shows.

The hardware isn't the sexiest out there, but the phone is well put together and the hardware is mostly good. The screen's small size and outdated resolution may disappoint some, but first-time smartphone buyers will be pleased with that they see. The signal issues and poor call quality, however, could be showstoppers for many potential customers.

The low-powered processor means that the overall performance of the software is sketchy at times, and it shows across the home screens, menus, and applications. The camera and gallery apps are the most strongly affected by the lack of horsepower, which are far too slow to be of much use. Worse, the results achieved with the Activa 4G's camera are simply not worth the effort much of the time.

First-time smartphone buyers might forgive the Activa 4G for many of these faults -- as long as they have access to good, strong 4G signal from MetroPCS. You can't expect much from a $149 smartphone, and the Huawei Activa 4G doesn't deliver much.